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“So?” I nibbled her tense jaw before kissing my way over to her earlobe, where I nibbled some more, loving the way she shivered and shuddered against me. My Charlotte couldn’t resist me, and I loved it. “Are you sure you have to go to work tonight?”
Her response this time was a bit less stern and far breathier. “Yes, I’m sure.” Her nails dug into my shoulders as she melted into me, the heat between her legs grinding against my straining cock and making me moan. “I’ve already asked my staff to cover me more than I should the past couple of weeks, and I can’t expect them to do it forever.”
“Hmm.” I bent to kiss the tops of her breasts, then toyed with a pretty pink nipple until she squirmed and mewled into my mouth. “Well, as the boss, there’s no reason you can’t invite a guest to come along, right?”
Charlotte pulled back, giving me an inquiring look. “You want to come to work with me?”
I shrugged. “If you’re game.”
Her smile took my breath away. “Actually, I’d really like that.”
“Good.” I let her go to tug off my shirt, winking. “Me too. But let’s go ahead and shower first, eh?”
We got naked and climbed into the shower. It was a bit small for two people, but we made it work. I couldn’t get enough of her—the way she smelled, the way she tasted, the sounds she made as she came apart in my arms as I went down on her, her back to the tile wall. After her shudders had ebbed, I stood and she stroked me as the water ran over us, our mouths sealed together in a kiss to swallow my cries of passion. It felt like coming home.
By the time we got out and got dressed, her mom had settled into the sofa in the living room with Savannah on her lap. She’d put on a movie, and they were watching it together. Some cartoon with talking cars.
“Are you sure you don’t mind staying tonight?” Charlotte asked once more as she pulled on her jacket. A bit of the tension around her lips had returned, I noticed, and I couldn’t help wondering what this thing was between her and her mom. I knew a bit about Charlotte’s past, but there seemed to be more that she wasn’t telling me. I felt closer to her than to anyone else on the planet, but there still seemed to be a wall between us that I wasn’t sure how to breach.
“I said it’s fine, honey,” her mom answered with an edge of tension in her voice.
Yep. Definitely something going on there. I’d need to ask Charlotte about it later. For now, we needed to get to the tavern.
I kissed Savannah goodbye, waved to Charlotte’s mom and thanked her again, then followed Charlotte out the door.
EIGHTEEN
Rhodes Tavern was jamming.
It was Friday night, and the place was loud and busy—just how I liked it. Of course, having Gabe there didn’t hurt either. He was currently sitting at the end of the bar, sipping his drink and giving me the kind of stare that made me shiver. I had to fight myself to keep from dragging him into the storeroom.
I’d been busy, filling in where needed. Directing traffic at the door. Busing tables. Mopping up messes. Just generally doing whatever would help most at any given time. Now I was bartending while one of the guys took their break. It was fun, hearing all the chatter and talking with patrons. I’d always liked bartending. Something about mixing drinks was interesting to me—sort of like cooking, without the food.
Music thumped through the overhead speakers from the jukebox in the corner. It played everything from rock to pop to syrupy country ballads. Right now a bunch of people were on the dance floor in the corner doing the electric slide. I couldn’t help tapping my toes as I worked behind the bar.
Gabe and I had even managed to sneak in a dance or two over the course of the night. It was nice getting out of the house for once and letting loose, even if I was working most of the time.
Speaking of letting loose, our first dance had been a fast, Macarena-style thing where I had no idea what I was doing, but that he seemed to handle pretty well. The dance floor had been packed, so at least I didn’t stand out too badly, but I hadn’t missed the fact Gabe had caught the attention of quite a few ladies. The man had moves. Heat crept up my cheeks imagining what he could do between the sheets.
But back off, ladies. He’s mine.
I shook my head and grabbed another glass to start a new drink order.
Our second dance tonight was a slow song. A croon-ey ballad about love and how it changed a person, sometimes without them even knowing. While I wasn’t ready to go quite that far and put the L-word to what I felt toward Gabe, I had to admit what was between us was pretty great.
I glanced down the bar and met his gaze again, and my internal temperature went up a few notches. Yeah. Great indeed. We’d swayed to the music, our bodies brushing, our breath mingled, our hearts beating in time, and for a moment, I got lost in the magic. Of course, then one of the servers had interrupted us and we’d had to cut our dance short. It was a nice memory, though.
Now it was nearing last call, and I wanted to wring those last few dollars out of my customers before sending them on their way. I set two fuzzy nipples on a tray for a server, then turned to the next ticket. Four shots of tequila and a couple longnecks. Easy-peasy.
As I worked, I enjoyed the tingle of Gabe’s stare on me. It made me feel wanted and wild. Made me feel protected too, like as long as he was watching me, nothing else could touch me. Memories of us earlier, in the shower, kept flashing into my head, making me even warmer all over.
Maybe after we closed, I’d pull him down the hall to my office and we could have a repeat performance. The desk was old and wooden, but if we broke it, I’d just have to get a new one. Ha!
“Hey, boss,” one of the servers called from the other end of the bar. “Can I get a couple more specials, please?”
“Sure thing.” I finished with the shots and bottles, then moved on to his order. Time flew by after that, and before I knew it, the last hour was gone and we were closed. Rather than making the staff stay, I told them to go home and I’d handle the cleanup and resetting myself. I figured it was the least I could do after all they’d done for me the last few weeks.
A few servers gave me knowing looks as they walked out, their eyes flicking from me to Gabe and back again like they knew exactly what I was thinking, but I didn’t care. I just wanted more time alone with him.
